Monday, August 03, 2009

It's always nice to hang out with the p.schoolers. Whilst it may not be often, we always find new things to talk about and pick up from where we last left off. Meet ups almost always involve food; whether it's a cookout or barbeque at someone's place or sussing out a new place in town. We found ourselves at a relatively quieter outfit in the Orchard Road area last weekend for a belated birthday get-together.

Oriole, alongside with Bedrock Bar & Grill is Whitebait & Kale's newest venture. The whole vibe of the place is rather casual and is excellent for an afternoon chat session with the girls.

Oriole has a rather extensive salad and sandwich menu which makes it a good place for light meals. The sandwiches are served on its own without any sides. I liked Wen's Cubano sandwich as I really found the combination of pickles, ham, bacon & cheese rather enticing. My only gripe was that the bread was slightly soggy. The quesadillas were not too bad with all the generous amount of gooey cheese but I felt that it needed a bit more flavour; a bit more punch if you know what I mean. The Mushroooms on Toast was unimpressive as the bread was too thick and too dry.

While Oriole doesn't exactly impress with its food, it excels in the beverage department. Oriole is home to Singapore's Number 1 and 3 baristas so one would expect a good cup of coffee there. To be honest, I'm no coffee expert but the coffee was to my liking; aromatic and not too acidic. It was also pretty, to boot.

I did learn something interesting from Liz who had taken a barista course previously. Apparently, you could tell the skill of a barista from the foam of the coffee. If the teaspoon rests on top of the foam without sinking immediately, it's good foam. No points for guessing that the foam at Oriole passed the test with flying colours. We even made sure by trying it on a 2nd cup of coffee. I guess the Number 1 barista in town, John Ting does live up to his name.

Prices are reasonable and I would be returning for the coffee and the laid back ambience. Oriole could be on to something with its boast of excellent coffee. If only they could do better with their food.